Voltage multiplying vibrator apparatus



Dec. 30, 1952 J, GELZER 2,624,034

VOLTAGE MULTIPLYING VIBRATOR APPARATUS Filed April 6, 1949 Patented Dec. 30, 1952 VOLTAGE MULTIPLYING VIBRATOR APPARATUS John R. Gelzer, Jackson, Mich., assignor to Elton, Inc., Jackson, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application April 6, 1949, Serial No. 85,808

1 Claim.

This invention relates to voltage multiplying vibrator apparatus of the kind employing a transformer and vibrator means in association with a source of electrical energy to develop voltages substantially higher than the source voltage.

In Patent 2,449,214 I have described apparatus of the above kind which is capable of developing very high D. C. voltages in the order of several thousand volts and which comprises relatively small components and employs light weight cells or batteries.

The present invention has for its object to provide such apparatus which, while retaining in large measure the simplicity, compactness, and efficiency of the aforesaid apparatus according to Patent No. 2,449,214 is yet capable of yielding substantially higher voltage multiplication.

A further object of the invention is to provide voltag'e'multiplying vibratory apparatus of the above kind having a single primary winding through which energizing current flows during both halves of the current cycle. v

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear clear from a consideration of the following description and claim taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, which is a circuit diagram illustrating one form of the invention.

Referring to the drawing, the battery It] connects through a switch l2 and lead line l4 to a vibrator reed it of a vibrator assembly, which includes the additional vibrator reeds I8, 20 and 22, all conveniently connected together by a mechanical bridge of insulating material so as to move in synchronism and constitute a four-pole vibrator.

The battery I!) connects by lead line 24 with the vibrator reed l8 and both reeds l8 and I6 have associated fixed contacts l8, l8 and l6, l6" respectively, whereas the other vibrator reeds 20 and 22 have fixed contacts 20', 20" and 22', 22" respectively.

The fixed contacts l8, l8 and l6, l6" are cross-connected by the circuit leads 24 and 26 to constitute a two-pole reversing switch, with the contact I8 being connected to the contact Hi and the contact 18 being connected to the contact I6.

As will be understood, the vibrator reeds l6 and 18 make successive contacts with their fixed contacts l6, l6" and I8, l8" and the action of the two-pole reversing switch is to place the battery It] alternately across the primary of a transformer also included in the circuit and indicated at 26, whereby to reverse the polarity of 2 the connection with each alternation of the vibrator reeds I6 and I8.

An electro-magnet is connected from reed l8 to stationary contact l8" and is positioned physically so that it will intermittently exert an attractive force on the four-pole reed assembly constituted by the reeds l8, I6, 20 and 22. Contact [6' should be adjusted to normally touch reed l6 when the four-pole reed assembly is at rest, so that the initial attractive force exerted by the electro-magnet will start the four-pole reed assembly in vibratory motion.

A lead 28 from the secondary of the transformer connects to the common junction 30 of the fixed contacts 20" and 22', as well as to the common junction 36 of capacitors 32 and 34. A second lead 38 from the transformer secondary connects to the common junction 40 of capacitors 42 and 44.

By employing the two vibrator reeds I6 and I8 in combination with transformer 26, it is possible to use a single winding for the transformer primary as compared with conventional vibrator practice, which is to employ a center tapped primary winding connected so that each half of the primary winding conducts current during half of each operating cycle. The arrangement according to the present invention, however, provides that a single primary winding will conduct current during both halves of the alternating current cycle, thereby providing more efficient utilization of the winding space of the transformer 26 and enabling the latter to be made smaller and lighter for a given amount of power compared with the conventional vibrator circuit arrangements.

In operation, when vibrator reed 20 touches fixed contact 20", a current will flow out of transformer 25 and will charge capacitor 42 to voltage V, which is the secondary voltage of the transformer. In the next alternation of the vibrator reed 20, it will touch fixed contact 20. During the time interval that vibrator reed 20 remains in contact with contact 20 a current will flow into output capacitor 32 and charge it to a voltage of 2V. During this interval of time the voltage V in the secondary transformer winding will have reversed in polarity, due to the action of the two-pole reversing switch above described, and will therefore be added to the voltage stored in capacitor 42. The action of the vibrator reed 20 is to alternately accumulate voltage V in capacitor 42 and then to add this voltage in series with a corresponding voltage V in the transformer secondary. The sum total of these two voltages is then transferred through fixed contact 20' to the output capacitor 32, which is then charged to a voltage 2V.

A capacitor is connected across the secondary winding of .the transformer 26 so as to reduce sparking at contacts l8, I8, l8, l6, I6, [6, 20, 20', 20" and 22, 22', 22", which might result from therapid interruption of the current in the primary winding of transformer 25.

As is seen in the circuit diagram, the transformer secondary is connected through the capacitors 42 and 44 to two halves of a sym metrical output circuit arrangement, the operation of each half of which is as above described and will be understood. The result is that there will be developed across the capacitor 34 a charge rising to a voltage 2V in a manner. similar to the voltage 2V developed in capacitor 42. Accordingly, a total output voltage taken across capacitors 42 and 54 in series will be V, 1. e. four times the voltage in the secondary of the transformer 26.

It will be appreciated, therefore, that the present invention enables a substantial voltage multiplication to be obtained with the use of small dry cells or batteries and in an exceedingly compact and efilcient manner.

In thecircuit shown, the maximum voltage appearing across the secondary contacts 20, 20" and 22', 22" will not exceed one-half the output voltage at the output terminals 06, 6. The secondary winding of the transformer 26 would be wound to produce a voltage equal to one-quarter the output voltage. It is, therefore, possible to produce a voltage multiplying vibrator apparatus with a considerably smaller power transformer and with lower voltages at rectifier contacts and transformer windings than would otherwise be possible.

It will be apparent that still higher voltage multiplication can be obtained by the insertion of additional series connected vibrators in the transformer secondary circuit. The invention provides a charging system common to both halves of a balanced arrangement and which derives energy from a single transformer winding or other source of voltage of alternating polarity, whereby to provide a large measureof voltage amplification from said transformer'winding or other voltage source.

Having thus described my invention in one practical form what I claim and wish to secure by Letters Patent is as follows:

Electrical vibrator apparatus for multiplying the voltage of each alternate half of an A. C. wave and converting these voltages into a single D. C. output voltage of higher order of multiplication than that of each said half wave comprising in combination, a four-pole vibrator composed of four pairs of fixed contacts each with a vibrator reed, two pairs of said fixed contacts being cross-connected to form a two-pole reversing switch, a transformer having the opposite ends of its primar winding connected with said reversing switch and having the opposite ends of its secondary winding connected with the other -two pairs of said fixed vibrator contacts, said one each of the fixed contacts of said other pair of vibrator contacts and with a pairof output terminals, and conductor means connecting'th opposite end of said transformer secondary with the other fixed contacts of said other pair, of vibrator contacts and with said further pair of capacitators. 1

JOHN R. GELZER REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Date Number Name 2,040,688 Drury May 12,1936 2,232,010 Musser Feb. 18,1941 2,240,123 Shoup et a1 Apr. 29, 1941'- 2,267,233 Elstrom Dec. 23, 1941 2,330,500

Leifer Sept. 28, 1943 

